Tchu

Nice trip report. Sounds like a good Sunday. Glad you got to experience the awesomeness that is the front car on Diamondback. Row 1 or 2... either way... best seats on the train!

Row 1 or 2 is where it's at. As much as I absolutely love getting yanked over the first three towering drops while riding in the back... the front has three things going for it that trump the back in my opinion. 1.) Great view - While the staggered/stadium seating really does offer a decent view even in the back or middle, there's something amazing about sitting up front and having nothing remotely blocking any part of your line of sight. 2.) Smoothness - While DB feels pretty much like riding on glass and avoids all of the painful transitions that Arrow's and Vekoma's are known for... there is a slight vibration in the back of the train. It's not painful, but I've found it can be a bit distracting from the rush of the ride. 3.) Ejector - aka, 'The Trim Hill'. I feel the front really offers more diverse air (floater, forceful floater, ejector) than the back. That hill immediately following the hammerhead turn is incredible. And despite the trim brake present (insert booing), that hill provides the most forceful burst of air on the entire coaster if you're riding in the front two or three rows. You're just shoved outta your seat and knocked right back down as you head into that helix.

I don't think I can even begin to pick one thing, but if i had to do a top 5... (in no specific order) -The Beast's double helix finale -Diamondback's first drop -Diamondback's fifth drop (the trim hill) into that first helix -Firehawk's loop -Flight Deck's loud, shakey/shifty lift hill that always pauses at some point for a moment (first time anyone rides this with me, I get a kick outta them freaking out when the lift shakes, clanks and comes to a stop).

Went to the park last Friday (5/29) with the wife and rode Diamondback 3 times. For the second and third times this season, I saw a SRL that was getting outta control in length, and for the second and third times, I saw Ride-Ops filling rows in trains solely from the SRL to try and lessen the length of the line. I don't care if they go back to handing out passes and disallowing groups, or if they just get the Ride-Ops to follow the actual rules/structure of the SRL... but I'm quickly growing tired of watching couples/groups joining the SRL and get seated together while those of us waiting in the main line are put on hold -Matt, who thinks there are some Ride-Ops who aren't familiar with the definition of "stand-by only".

Fair enough. Never reaches 70, and I suppose you could argue no coaster really reaches the speeds they're advertised at (cuz 50mph sounds sexier than 47 and so on), but it's listed as topping out at 64.8mph. Even with the trims here and there throughout the ride, you're flying at a couple points. Either way its a bigger, taller, faster wooden coaster than the vast majority of its counterparts. Making it an entirely different structure to have to deal with.

I do occasionally wonder, amongst the coaster enthusiast community, if it’s more just complaining because there’s a brake present, and not complaining because of what it actually does (or doesn’t) take away from the ride. For example, the 5th hill trim on DB. What if it wasn’t there, but the train naturally carried less speed up and over the hill so that no trim wasn't necessary…. would people still complain, or would Diamondback suddenly be praised for the fact that it has no trims anywhere outside of the MCBR and final brake run? If the train is traveling at 70mph, and the brake trims it to 60mph… what if the train just naturally never got to 70mph and just traveled at 60. They would crest the hill at the same speed, producing relatively similar/identical G-forces and amounts of air… but would one be vilified simply for having a brake? As it relates to The Beast, there are trims I like and trims I don’t. I loathe the trims before the second drop, because without them, there would be a great burst of (likely) ejector air. I appreciate the trims in the shed. I think they’re too abrupt and a trim off a little too much speed as of right now, but I wouldn’t want them removed completely. The following couple of turns would just be brutal and unpleasant. With all that said, it’s not exactly fair to compare The Beast to other woodies and criticize its use of brakes. The Beast is an entirely different animal from pretty much every other wood coaster out there. Maybe Raven doesn’t have brakes, but Raven features much smaller trains with lower capacity. Thus, the trains aren’t going to carry anywhere remotely near the weight of Beast’s trains. Couple that with the fact that Raven tops out at about 45-50mph, while The Beast reaches speeds of 60-70mph… and we’re talking a whole lot less stress that would be put on the track in theory. And while Voyage may not have any trims, it’s also 4 years old and technically a hybrid coaster offering it advantages in stresses over a true wooden coaster. With all that in its favor, I’ll still be surprised it 20 years from now Voyage is trimless. It’s not fair to Beast to compare what precautions are necessary in its 30th year of operating to a coaster that has been in existence just 1/10th that amount of time.

1.) T Express - Just looks outta this world. Being as it's not located in the US, you won't hear as much talk about it, but the TPR group took a trip to ride it and apparently blew everyone away (not literally... they returned from the trip to report of its awesomeness). 2.) Behemoth - To compare to Diamondback. Heading into this season, Behemoth seemed to be the most highly regarded of the B&M hyper coasters. Absolutely love Diamondback, and would love to ride its sister coaster at its sister park (why is so much of the amusement park world female?) 3.) Nemesis - I love B&M inverts (pretty much everything B&M for that matter). Montu and Dueling Dragons-Ice both rate near the top of my list, and Raptor is also a very fun ride. Add in the unique terrain and theme of this ride, and you've got a coaster I would love to ride. 4.) Expedition GeForce - Widely regarded as one of the very best (usually First or Second) steel coasters on the planet. First drop is supposedly insane, and the air-time looks forceful. I'd place this above the recently redecorated Bizarro at SFNE due to GeForce's fairly wooded location. 5.) Piraten - For their incredibly small size, these Mega-lites reportedly pack a punch you have to experience to believe.

I've personally not had my seat assigned on Millie before, and that includes trips when the park was crazy busy such as the last weekend in June and mid-October during Haunt season when things are nuts. If they assign seats on MF... it must be a very rare occasion. I find that to be a rather silly notion. An employee pulsing the line is working. In fact, they're doing the same exact thing the "seat assigner" is doing... keeping a quick flow to the line and managing the station area so it does not become congested, cramped, and inefficient. The only thing they aren't doing is specifically assigning seats, which as mentioned in this thread, hasn't proven to save any sort of significant time waiting in line. I don't understand why people are so convinced that things would fall apart and that KI will continue to assign seats when you can look up north to coasters like MF and Maverick which run without a seat assigner, and even farther up north to another of KI's sister parks where Behemoth abandoned seat assigning during its first operating season and all reports from Canada's Wonderland is that the line continues to move just fine... quickly and efficiently.

I'd like to pick my seat on Diamdonback as well. The first time I rode DB was Friday, April 24th. The park was empty. The line for DB was about 6-10 minutes, stretching no further back than where the queue passes under the lift. And they were assigning seats and actually, that was the only time I've ever been denied a seat request. What was the point of that? For a 6 minute wait they felt the need to assign seats and deny requests to "keep the line moving"? It was just mentioned above that Behemoth rather quickly abandoned the assigned seating and that the line moved just as quickly, arguably more so. And like I said earlier... No employee around, mass hysteria <------------------------------------------------------------->Assigned seats They're opposite ends of the spectrum. There is middle ground. Pulse the line if you're concerned about chaos in the loading station (and I'm not sure its that big of a concern, b/c The Beast at night often has a full, chaotic station... they don't assign seats there). You can manage the traffic in the station without assigning seats.

But others do care. While there isn't a bad seat on Diamdonback, there are certainly some that are much better than others (Row 2 owns all in my opinion). And I think those of us who don't care much for the seat assigning are disappointed that it can be luck of the draw where you get to sit. If I wait 40 minutes standing in the regular queue for the right to request a seat... I think that request should be granted. I've paid my way into the park, waited my time in line... if I want to wait another 10 minutes specifically for the front seat... why shouldn't I be allowed. It doesn't make anyone's wait longer except my own (and any other requesting that specific row... but again, that's their choice). In fact,if a ride-op is moving down the line and is going to assign me row 16, and I request to wait for row 1 or 2 and I am granted that request... I go and wait another few minutes. Meanwhile, the person behind me now gets row 16 and gets on a that train, instead of having to wait for the next. I believe Terpy, mentioned being told where to go enough at work and in life... it's nice (and not unreasonable in my opinion) to think that we can go to an amusement park and not be ordered where to go and where to sit. I don't think its asking too much to be able to pick your seat on a rollercoaster.

What exactly makes you think that? Italian Job was built in in 2005 and aside from some very slow and understaffed days has always had a separator. Millennium Force built in 2000 still uses a separator. The Diamonback separator position will likely be staffed for a very long time as it improves capacity and keeps things flowing better. But this gets back to the "how long will the SRL be around?" question. I believe it didn't last long with Behemoth. I can't imagine the seat assigning lasts long, and I don't think it does much at all to keep the line moving. I would imagine, what is more likely to happen, is that an employee will remain staffed at the top of the steps for the next few years, but will move away from specific seat assigning and instead "pulse" the line, letting a certain number of individuals through into the station at a time, then letting those people break up into rows on their own. That's how it was for Maverick. When I rode it in 2007... assigned seating. When I road it in 2008, the ride-op was just pulsing groups into the station and letting them head to rows on their own. Forcing people to specific seats isn't too popular. I would imagine the park wouldn't want to do it for any longer than they feel is absolutely necessary.

http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=17625 ^There's a very thorough detailed discussion ongoing about the SRL... its every changing policy, and the potential problems that arise from certain uses of the line. I suggest you guys check it out and add your two cents. As it relates to the seating, the stadium seating is nice, and without it... the capacity wouldn't be that much greater. The standard B&M hyper trains seat 36. These trains seat 32. That's not a huge difference, and I personally think its worth for the better view, and the extra length/weight of the trains that do more to push and pull opposite ends of the train over the air-time hills. In regards to the 'assigned' seating, as has been mentioned, it's sort of the luck of the draw, and no one is certain when it will officially stop (I believe it ended for Behemoth before the end of its first season). I would, however, say there are a few things you can do to increase your chances of being granted a seat request. 1.) Ask politely. "I want row 1" is a far cry from "Could I wait for the front row, please" I've found that asking (not demanding) and doing so politely with a smile has netted me the seat I've requested about 80-90% of the time. 2.) Don't argue and Don't switch Rows behind the Ops back. This sort of action isn't going to help you have your requests granted in the future, and while I highly doubt a guest would be kicked out of the park for going to a line they weren't assigned, if a Rid Op sees it, they're certainly not going to grant your future requests. 3.) Crowds can play a role. If the park is really crowded and Diamondback is sporting an hour plus wait... the Ride-Ops are going to be less likely to take requests in an effort to keep the queue moving quickly and to prevent lines forming at certain rows. If its a slow day (say middle of the week) and lines are 20-30 minutes, your request is probably more likely to be granted. Also, and I almost hate pointing this out for fear it'll start a trend... but for those of you who prefer the front of the train on Diamondback to the back (and I'm among them... better view, better wind in the face, and a MAJOR burst of air on the trim hill that the back just doesn't provide) don't be afraid to request ROW 2. It offers all the freedom and awesome forces of row 1, without the popularity and long lines. There have been a couple of occasions i've gotten to the station and seen 6-10 people waiting for Row 1... and only two people waiting in Row 2 (same as every other row). I request row 2, and because it doesn't have a line any longer than rows 3-16, I'm granted the request. I still get a "front row" ride, and don't have the extra wait or the high chance of my request being turned down by the Ride-Op.

I personally like the current colors. Fit the theme and stand out from the sea of rides at Kings Island. Plus, the silver track just looks sleek (and thats with half the paint worn off). A fresh coat of silver would look spectacular. I'm also ok with anything but red. 2007-->Firehawk-->Red 2009-->Diamondback --> Red After back to back new coasters being painted a shade of red, I think we've met our quota of red coasters. Then again... this is KI under Cedar Fair ownership... the same Cedar Fair that owns Cedar "there is only one prime color!" Point

I'll answer Terpy's questions with my own opinion. For starters, an acceptable amount of linejumpers? I'd say a small handful (2-4) per hour or so of a ride's wait time. Fact of the matter is, line jumping happens everywhere, and nothing can be done to ever catch it 100% of the time. I've seen line cutters at KI, at CP, at Disney, at Universal's IOA... it happens everywhere. The goal is to eliminate it... the reality is to keep it as infrequent as possible. To answer the question of what level of employees ignoring line-jumping is acceptable? Zero. Absolutely nothing. That's not to say that a Ride-Op is always going to be able to handle the problem themselves or be able to remedy the situation the exact way the guest would like to see it taken care of... but its unacceptable for even a single count of an employee ignoring it, simply saying "nothin I can do", or worse yet... encouraging it (as apparently has happened a couple times this season with Ride-Ops helping people meet up with their group further ahead in line). That sort of thing... there should be zero tolerance for. With all that said, in fairness to Kings Island... they are a different sort of park than Cedar Point. This weekend specifically featured a big extreme sports event. That sort of thing is going to draw a young, often rebellious, teenage crowd. Also, Cedar Point is more a resort park. You see more in the way of families on vacation, and the park features marina's, hotels, restaurants etc. As a resort park, they will attract somewhat different crowds and have access to a varying level of income to disperse across different areas of business (in this case, on security). Some of that $250 a night that guests spend to stay inside the park at one of its hotels can be used to hire an extra security guard. And an extra set of eyes to police the line will cut down on the number of successful line-jumpers. I've made two trips to KI this year. Made two trips to Cedar Point last year. And in those four trips, I personally saw a very similar amount of line-jumping at both parks. Thankfully, and luckily, in all four instances... thatwas a minimal amount. -Matt, who really thinks the Memorial Day holiday coupled with the extreme sports special event has probably lead to inflated amounts of problems on this specific weekend.

What's doubly frustrating is just how excellent of a park Kings Island can be. I've made two trips so far this season and have had an excellent time with nothing but good things to say. In fact, other than a small handful of kids cutting from the SRL to the main queue at DB... I have no complaints. The park has been very clean. Line-jumping has been at a minimum. Practically all my seat requests on DB have been granted. Got stuck on the brakes of The Beast once this season. Just sat there outside of the station after the ride for probably 10 or 15 minutes while the ride crew worked to take care of some problem with the train in the station. When our train was finally rolled in, the ride-ops apologized profusely for our inconvienence. Did some shopping at the DB Trading Post on my last visit and had a wonderful little conversation with a very friendly employee. And that's what makes this so frustrating. There's always those few bad apples that ruin it for the bunch (both in terms of guests and employees). There's little that can be done about the line-jumping. It happens at every park to varying degrees. And while that's not to say the park shouldn't step up their efforts to enforce line-jumping policies... there's only so much they can actively do. Having security police the line of the brand new roller coaster is a good move and a step in the right direction. Plus, as Terpy mentioned... certain events draw certain crowds that aren't usually at the park. This weekends events (coupled with the busy holiday) are gonna potentially lead to amplified problems with guest manners. But what is absolutely unacceptable are employees who blow off customers and think that work is a social gathering. This isn't study hall in high school. These people are being paid to do a job and provide a service and they need to do so properly. And if Guest Relations was unhelpful, even rude and dismissing... that is probably the biggest sin. I believe there have been a couple other Trip Reports with people complaining that Guest Relations was rude and short (at times even mocking) and not at all concerned with the guests problems/issues. It could be that there's one or two of those bad apples in guest relations. If so... Kings Island/Cedar Fair management need to be made aware of this, and then need to do something about it immediately. It's bad enough to know some workers are going to be rude and not take their job seriously. Its a problem on a far worse level when those people start to work in position higher up the food chain, and specifically in a position that is meant to help address the public's concerns with other problems. In two trips to Kings Island this year, I've had a wonderful time and seen a park run well, and efficiently with a clean, kind, and friendly staff. That's Dr. Jekyll. And that's good. But sometimes Mr. Hyde rears his ugly mug.

I don't see how a stern seat assigner fixes any of the SRL's problems. It doesn't prevent people from switching lines. It doesn't prevent the SRL getting too long and outta control. It doesn't prevent the park feeling they need to shutdown the SRL or go back to passes. And I assume you are referencing just the SRL when you say "No Seat Selections" (taking away seat requests from the main queue would cause a whole other set of problems/complaints), but I personally haven't seen this being a problem. In my time spent in the SRL I haven't heard any Single Rider request a seat. Even if they did... I don't see how it adds any real time to the wait. Either the Ride-Op can accomidate, or they can't. Either way, it shouldn't hold up the line. The idea of building tall fences/barricades between the SRL and main queue would almost certainly prevent line-jumpers and is definitely something for the park to look into. But, it's not without its own problems. One, it costs money to build a barricade. Two, while it might work, it would likely be an eye-sore. And three, the park is just a day away from beginning its daily operations. When is the park supposed to go in and tear down the existing railing and build a barricade? Unless they did it in one 8 hour shift overnight one evening... but that seems unlikely.

If you ever see this happening, alert the ride operators immediately. That is line jumping and should not be tolerated. If no one alerts the ride operators, they can't do anything about it. I don't go to the park to spend time going rounds with the ride-ops/unruly guests/Guest Relations. I'm there to have a good time, to enjoy the park environment and all the great rides. It shouldn't be the guests responsibility to police lines. I understand the staff can only see so much on their own, and that's just an unfortunate face of amusement parks, but that shouldn't shift the burden on the guests. And as was just mentioned above, often they won't do anything if there aren't multiple complaints or some sort of proof. In this particular case, I was standing where the SRL rounds the corner practically. A couple kids a few people in front of me crossed over into the main queue. I couldn't have really played line-cop even if I'd wanted to. I was stuck at the end of a thirty person SRL. The nearest Ride-op was nearly forty feet away at the top of the ramp. Unless I screamed at the top of my lungs (and even that might not have worked) he wasn't going to hear me. I can't very well push past 30some people, pushing to the front of the line, assuring them I'm only going up to discuss line-cutters. And I couldn't just wait till we got up to the ride-op, then point out the kids who cut in line. They'd jumped from SRL to the main que. They were on a train before I'd moved 5 people closer to the station. I'd have loved for those kids to been removed from the park (even though they actually saved me time) because using the SRL to cut ahead of 90% of the main queue is just pathetic. But even had I thought it would have led to something, and even if I'd been willing to wait for security and give my word against there's and do that thing, my position in the line, and the dual nature of SRL/main queue left me with basically no opportunity to point out the misconduct in a manner in which anything could be done about the transgression. This all gets back to the, at times, crazy and out of control antics the SRL lends itself too. And there's little that can be done about it. Outside of stationing an employee to specifically police the line. This is why I tend to agree with Terpy, in that I could see the SRL becoming extinct before the end of its first season. Also, I tend to disagree with the prevailing sentiment in this thread that the SRL is not meant to save single-riders time. First of all, promoting an entirely separate line that gets to stroll right past the main-queue and its endless switchbacks immediately gives that impression. Secondly, calling it a "Single Rider Line" and promoting it via passes (well, up until the past week), a separate entrance point, announcements etc... doesn't sound like something that is meant to just benefit the park and keeping the main line going. Also, we're talking about a coaster with a 1600pph capacity. It's not like sendind a train out here and there with an emtpy seat or two is a big deal in terms of slowing up the line. In fact, if every train were sent out with 2 empty seats, DB would still move 1500pph... and would still be among, if not the fastest moving line in the park. Let's not act like the SRL is necessary to fill all seats and prevent the ride from becoming a capacity nightmare. If it was just about filling single seats to keep the main queue moving... why not do like Maverick? Why not do like MF and many other rides where the ride-op simply asks for a single rider. That single rider moves up through the line and fills the seat... problem solved and train filled. The fact that DB has a specific 'SRL' that has its own separate main entrance, moves past the entire queue etc seems to state to me that one of the main goals of the SRL is, in fact, to save single riders time. And that's likely why they want (or wanted initially) to keep groups out. A couple groups of six people jumping in the main queue adds approximately 25-30 seconds to the wait time based on the DB's capacity. That same dozen people entering the SRL could easily add a many as 10-15 minutes to the wait. And that leads to Ride-ops assigning trains solely from the SRL... whether they should be or not.

When they're actually using the passes, they are handed out at the entrance of the ride. Usually there is an employee (or two) stationed who manages the SRL passes, height checking, test seat, etc. Lately, however, it appears as if they have abandoned the use of Single Rider passes. This has led to people crossing over from one line to the other at the steps. I saw a couple of instances of groups of two or four getting in the SRL, walking all the way up to the end of that line (usually on the steps up to the station) and then duck under the railing and cross into the main line. Thus, they bypassed 90% of the wait and still had the ability to ride together and request seats. If that sort of thing continues, I expect them to quickly go back to handing out passes.

Took a trip down to Kings Island on Friday, May 15th. I knew it was Math & Science day, but I knew that this had been the case past Friday's and that the park had been fairly empty. Hoping for the same, I got up early to cook breakfast for my wife (I felt bad... I was heading for amusement park fun, she was headed to work ), did some work on the car, cleaned up, and headed for the park around 9:30AM. Unfortunately, Columbus (despite its many wonderful traits) is situated poorly for coaster enjoyment in Ohio. KI is closer than CP, but I was still looking at a 90 minute drive (assuming traffic was light). Upon arriving at the park a little after 11:00, I was shocked to see just how busy the park looked. There were tons of buses in the parking lot. I believe someone in another topic mentioned that they counted about 150 buses, but I'd put the number closer to 34,648. Anyways, there was a ten or fifteen minute weight just to get through the metal detectors. With it being Math & Science Day, that meant a lot of students. And if there's one thing almost all students have in common... its that they bring backpacks to parks. So that meant each and every time someone went through the security check, the guards had to stop and rummage through a bag. Finally got into the park and the good times began. Place was crowded up until around 3:00 or 4:00PM, but while the lines stayed long, I enjoyed the park atmosphere, walking around, snacking, taking pictures. First ride I hopped on was Diamondback. SRL was closed due to borderline abuse and extreme length, but that was fine because I wanted to request a specific seat anyway. Seat Assigner was gracious enough to grant the request, and I got a fantastic ride in on Row 2, right side of the train. I still contest that the front car trumps the back. I was glad to see in the first month of operation, that the trim brake on the hill following the hammerhead hadn't been ratcheted up. While you could definitely feel it grabbing, from the front seat, I was still ejected from my seat with what is easily the most forceful burst of air on the entire coaster. And its because of this more-or-less ejector type air on the 5th hill that I prefer the front sit. After some DB rides and a bite to eat, I headed over to Flight Deck. Due to living in Montana for awhile, and not getting over to Flight Deck during my trips to the park last year, it had been years since I'd been on the coaster. Saw Zach (Ki Man) chillin' further up in the line. Ride was short but sweet. I'd forgotten just how much fun Flight Deck really is. After that, I headed for The Beast (which had been home to a very long line all day). Luckily, it was down to about a 15 minute wait, and I got a great ride in on what is still my favorite woodie out there (even if the trims are a bit overboard). Walked around for a little while longer, bought a Diamondback t-shirt, then headed for one last ride on DB. Spent a coupld minutes staring at the queue debating on whether to use the SRL or the main line, and finally decided to wait in the main line. Would have only been a very short wait, but unfortunately they shut down the ride for 10 or 15 minutes due to some technical difficulties. Unfortunately, this happened in the one section of switchbacks that are completey without shade, and the sun pretty much fried the back of my neck. I did get a chance to speak briefly with Zach (who was once again just ahead of me in line), introduced myself and complemented him on his spectacular photographs he's been kind enough to share on these boards (and some others as well). Already thought he did amazing work, but after trying (and failing) to capture some awesome shots of Diamondback, I now have even more respect for how fantastic his photos are. Also bumped into Skaterboy, I believe it was, waiting in the SRL. Hope ya got through the pretty quickly, bud. Last time I had waited in it, the thing was hardly moving. Here's hoping you had more luck than I did! Finished off the day with a backseat ride. Great fun, and awesome outta your seat action on the first two drops. But, I noticed the vibration in the back of the train seemed stronger than it had just three weeks earlier when I'd visited. Might have just been my head, it had been a long day and I was pretty exhausted at that point. Still, fantastic ride and a nice cool down from the splash down before heading home for the day. All in all, a fantastic day. Looking forward to doing it again. Here are some of the pics I snapped. Use Photobucket and automatic resizing, so pics should be ok... but i apologize in advance if some of them are huge, and if so... I'll do what I can to resize them before they blow up someone's laptop. Tried to get some pictures of rides from locations and angles that I haven't seen much of so far. But that's often easier said than done. What do they say? Two is company, Three's a... Liked this shot,, set it as my new desktop background. DB from an angle I haven't seen so far (and now I know why... lousy spot for a picture!) Diamondback at the bottom of its first drop. Great speed, nice forces. Somewhere in this picture was supposed to be a coaster train... Two things I love! Vortex over La Rosa's. Not as good as Diamondback and Shaved Ice Up and over the second amazing hill Top of the lift, about to begin the awesome journey! From the ol' train. Love the way Diamondback just hides behind all the foilage More shots of Arrow goodness. Vortex is very photogenic. Here it is hiding. Though there transitions can be jerky, I've always loved Arrow's lattice work. Going into the boomerang... ...and exiting. Just a bit of what 5 minutes up in the Eiffel Tower can give you. And last but not least, a shot of Diamdonback+queue+blooming trees. This one is my favorite.

I know there's been a lot of debate on these forums about the SRL and KI's policy of not letting groups into the line. Many people seem to think that there's no harm/no foul in letting in groups, so long as those groups are willing to split up and ride separately. But yesterday was a prime example of why the park has often been enforcing a 'true single riders only' policy. On Friday, the park was not enforcing a "no groups" policy (nor were they handing out Single Rider cards) and since it was Math & Science Day, there were thousands of jr. high and high school students at the park. As a result, this meant there was an extraordinary amount of groups at Kings Island. Many of these groups of kids were looking at the main queue for Diamondback, seeing it was almost full (and not understanding that a full line is still only about a 45 minute wait thanks to B&M building people eaters), and hopping in the SRL. Most of these students were actually willing to split up and ride single rider, but so many groups were flocking into the SRL... that it became a longer wait than the main queue. Early in the day, the SRL was often closed because it had gotten so long that it was taking longer to empty than the main line. And why? All because of large groups being allowed in because these people didn't want to wait in a "long line" (I use the term long in reference to the number of people, not the actual wait time... but many park goers don't understand how fast this line moves). At one point, I was in the SRL and waited almost 30 mins. The two times I rode DB and waited in the regular line, I waited about 35-40 minutes. In fact, the occasion I did use the SRL... it was so long and moving so slowly due to all the groups of students who had flooded it... that the seat assigner actually held the main queue and started assigning seats strictly from the SRL. He'd point and say "two single riders in row 1. Two single riders in row 2. Two single riders in row 3" He filled half a train strictly by pairing up single-riders before turning back to the main line... all because the SRL was too long and taking more time than the main line. They even announce the SRL is a stand-by line only... the seat assigner technically shouldn't have been assigning single riders together. But he almost had too. And it seems to me that yesterday was exactly why KI had been enforcing a "no groups" policy for the SRL. The purpose of the SRL is to fill empty seats on trains, moving the lines more quickly, but also to allow true single riders the opportunity not to have to stand in line for an hour all by themselves. If Mom and Dad take litte Jr to the park, and Dad wants to ride DB, but Mom needs to stay with Jr who's too short to ride... they have to split up. The SRL should (in theory) allow Dad the opportunity to only be split up from his family for 10 minutes instead of an hour or two. For portions of the day, the SRL was closed, and I watched numerous 'true' single riders get turned away... all because groups had flooded the SRL, causing it to be a longer wait than the main queue. That's a problem. Yesterday made it clear, feelings about the SRL policy aside, that if the park does let anyone and everyone into the SRL... there are going to be problems. And this was just a Friday in mid-May. Wait till Saturday's in June and July

I saw that The Crypt was done a good portion of the day, and when it was finally opened, I did see many unhappy faces in its general vicinity. I guess this would explain why. - Matt, who never road TR:TR or The Crypt... but is still disappointed because he knows many people who enjoyed one of the parks high intensity, thrilling flats.

Weather.com is only calling for a 30% chance of rain, and not until evening/night (and that, of course, could change by the time I finish typing this reply). Hopefully, the forecast will cause some of the crowd to stay home, but the weather will hold out. I plan on being at the park tomorrow from about noon till whenever (probably till close if the rain stays away), sporting my KICentral shirt that arrived yesterday!

People are honestly offended by the phrase "families are where the money comes from"? First of all, lets differentiate about the appropriateness of an overheard comment made in passing conversation Vs making said statement in an official press release, or putting it on the quarterly report. That specific phrase (assuming that was exactly how it was worded) is casual, not very 'business-like'... but if it wasn't made at a business meeting/release/report... what's honestly the big concern with it being plainly stated? As for the offensiveness of it... it's not like they said "Families are where the money's at. Single people are stoooopid!" That would be offensive and unjust. Nor did they say "Families are where it's at, so the heck with thrill seekers. We ain't givin' them a thing!" What's wrong with Cedar Fair stating that families spend more money than the other audiences? Personally, I'm not at all offended by the park commenting that I (and others like me) tend to spend less money at the park than most families of four (five, six, etc). Coasters don't necessarily bring in the money. Coasters cost money (a lot) and then regardless of how many people ride them... bring in no income (other than the occasional on-ride photo). You don't have to pay to ride the coaster, or pay to board the trains. You don't have to pay for them to unlock the restraint and let you off. The coaster is necessary to keep the park relevant and in the news. Its necessary to attract that thrill seeker, but many times that audience is a younger, single audience that often buys season passes anyways and doesn't spend as much when at the park as a family of four. A long line at a coaster isn't making the park many nickels. In fact, I'd say the cost to run/maintain the coaster and the cost to staff the ride outweighs the handful of on-ride photos sold. A long line at the food stand in Nick U means mega bucks for the park. Everyone in that line is going to spend many dollars on food items that cost only a few nickels. Kings Island received a major thrill coaster in 2007 and 2009 (and the 09 install is a gem that looks like it could finally give KI its claim to a World Top Ten steel). If they take a couple years and focus on shows/kid's rides/etc for the family... it's not like they've neglected their other customers.

Did I miss something with this 'third hill brake'? Haven't been to the park the last couple weekends, so I suppose anything is possible... but last I road it, there's not a brake on the ride till the fifth hill. As for the best seat, I agree that the front car is the best spot on the train. Fantastic view and the fifth hill (oddly enough, the trimmed hill) offers a burst of air that I would personally describe as more ejector than floater. The back seat does offer more overall outta your seat air-time, but I prefer the more varied in force air-time of the front seat.

Question for any of the guys out there (especially any of you in the 5'10" 160lbs range)... Planning on ordering one of these T-shirts. Virtually every T-shirt I currently own is a Large and fits comfortably, not too tight, not too baggy. So I'm inclined to go with a Large; however, I look on the website at their sizing notes/recommendations, and based on my measurements... I'd fall into the Small category according to the chart. So for anyone who's received their shirt... is the size chart just wacky and to be ignored, or do cafepress T-Shirts just run exceptionally large?